Boy's trans-Atlantic text, fast police work save 15 migrants

Gregory Katz, Associated Press

April 8, 2016

Photo: Thibault Camus, STR

Image 1of/2

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 2

In this Feb. 4, 2016 photo, volunteer Liz Clegg, right, poses with her daughter Inca Sorrell, in the migrant camp of Calais, north of France. The text message from a young boy, writing in broken English on a no-frills cellphone, was frightening enough to set off a frantic, trans-Atlantic search that saved the lives of 15 migrants trapped in a locked truck in England. The message flashed on the cellphone of volunteer Liz Clegg, who in March had handed out hundreds of basic cellphones to children living in the squalid migrant camp in Calais, France, and told them to text in any crisis. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus) less

In this Feb. 4, 2016 photo, volunteer Liz Clegg, right, poses with her daughter Inca Sorrell, in the migrant camp of Calais, north of France. The text message from a young boy, writing in broken English on a ... more

Photo: Thibault Camus, STR

Image 2 of 2

Tanya Freedman a volunteer of the charity Help Refugees poses for a photograph for the Associated Press in London, Friday, April, 8, 2016. Freedman relayed a call from a colleague in New York, who in turn had received a text from a young boy in the container, to the British police which helped them release the 15 refugees that had been locked in a container and were running out of air The young boy had been given the phone by the charity Help Refugees in Calais, France. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) less

Tanya Freedman a volunteer of the charity Help Refugees poses for a photograph for the Associated Press in London, Friday, April, 8, 2016. Freedman relayed a call from a colleague in New York, who in turn had ... more

Photo: Alastair Grant, STF

Boy's trans-Atlantic text, fast police work save 15 migrants

1 / 2

Back to Gallery

LONDON - The text message from a young boy, writing in broken English on a no-frills cellphone, was frightening enough to set off a frantic, trans-Atlantic search that saved the lives of 15 migrants trapped in a locked truck in England.

The message flashed on the cellphone of volunteer Liz Clegg, who was attending a conference in New York: "I ned halp darivar no stap car no oksijan in the car no signal iam in the cantenar. Iam no jokan valla." It was written by Ahmed, an Afghan boy of about 7, trying to say: "I need help. The driver won't stop the car. No oxygen in the car. No signal. I'm in a container. I am not joking. I swear to God."

In March, Clegg and others volunteering at a squalid migrant camp in Calais, France, had handed out hundreds of basic cellphones to children there, programming in a number for them to text in a crisis.

She knew Ahmed wouldn't text something like that if he wasn't in danger. So she called Tanya Freedman, from the Help Refugees charity in London, to tell her the boy seemed to be suffocating.

Translator

To read this article in one of Houston's most-spoken languages, click on the button below.

Freedman called police in southeast England to tell them of the emergency. The police response was swift and effective, she said.

"I conveyed to them that it was a life-and-death situation," Freedman said Friday. "I had Ahmed's number, and the first thing they did was find an interpreter who spoke Pashto to talk to him. They called him and immediately they realized it was an emergency, and they were able to put a trace of his cellphone and find out he was in a lorry (truck) in Leicestershire."

Kent Police said in a statement they received a call at 2:50 p.m. Thursday and they established the truck was in Leicestershire. Police found the truck parked at a highway service station, broke into the back and freed 15 oxygen-starved migrants.

Leicestershire police said 14 migrants were detained on suspicion of entering Britain illegally, with their cases to be handled by immigration officials, and one man was arrested on suspicion of illegal trafficking.

Police said one child was placed in protective care.

"I think it's extraordinary that a 7-year-old boy knew his life was in danger and had the presence of mind to know what to do and give the right information and save himself and the others in the truck," Freedman said. "We hope he's getting the right kind of care."